• Out of the Depths

  • The Story of a Child of Buchenwald Who Returned Home at Last
  • By: Rabbi Israel Meir Lau
  • Narrated by: Steve Blane
  • Length: 15 hrs and 35 mins
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars (114 ratings)

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Out of the Depths  By  cover art

Out of the Depths

By: Rabbi Israel Meir Lau
Narrated by: Steve Blane
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Publisher's summary

Israel Meir Lau, one of the youngest survivors of Buchenwald, was just eight years old when the camp was liberated in 1945. Descended from a 1,000-year unbroken chain of rabbis, he grew up to become Chief Rabbi of Israel - and like many of the great rabbis, Lau is a master storyteller. Out of the Depths is his harrowing, miraculous, and inspiring account of life in one of the Nazis' deadliest concentration camps, and how he managed to survive against all possible odds.

Lau, who lost most of his family in the Holocaust, also chronicles his life after the war, including his emigration to Mandate Palestine during a period that coincides with the development of the State of Israel. The story continues up through today, with that once-lost boy of eight now a brilliant, charismatic, and world-revered figure who has visited with Popes John Paul and Benedict, the Dalai Lama, Nelson Mandela, and countless global leaders, including Ronald Reagan, Bill and Hillary Clinton, and Tony Blair.

©2011 Rabbi Israel Meir Lau (P)2011 Gildan Media Corp

Critic reviews

"This is a book on Judaism, its glory and ordeals, depicting a period that could possibly be judged to represent the hardest, bitterest, and darkest in the annals of the Jewish people. This is a book that portrays the persona of the writer alongside the traits of his Jewish people. This is a book whose every word has been inscribed in blood." (Shimon Peres)

What listeners say about Out of the Depths

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Amazing Book, Amazing Man

Rarely have I been as moved by a memoir. Hard to imagine a seven year old surviving the Buchenwald concentration camp, yet Rabbi Lau did. We hear how he lost family members one by one, yet was saved by his mother, who shoved him out of the line of doomed women and children, at the last minute. How could she have known their shared fate? How did she have the courage to do this? And once in the camp, this child is saved by a series of what can't be considered anything but miracles, time and time again. That and the efforts of many kind adults who wanted more than anything to see this child survive. Rabbi Lau's story after liberation, including the birth of the modern state of Israel, is no less riveting. A brilliant recounting of a Jewish child's trajectory in the twentieth century. The introduction alone is quite profound. Sets the tone for the rest.

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4 people found this helpful

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Phenomenal

What made the experience of listening to Out of the Depths the most enjoyable?

This was one of the best audiobooks I have listened to
facsinating story
very interesting insights into the State of israel and the Holocaust

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4 people found this helpful

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Lana

This was a wonderful book... Heartbreaking and hard to believe that such inhuman acts could have happened under the eyes of so many people... My hope is that no one will ever forgot what happened to all the families that were destroyed by such evil acts...

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Lessons of life learned pages by page

I loved the story, and as the son of two Polish Holocaust survivors, I felt a special understanding. The stories of survival rarely change much from person to person, but what one does with their life afterwards, is the real lesson.

I loved the book, but I never found a moment of enjoyment listening to the reader. His pronunciations had me shaking my head and his voice never was able to become the voice of the author.

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incredible story

really great book from an incredibly inspiring figure

highly recommend and shows miracle of life and perseverance

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Superb

Excellent Riveting Could not put it down without finishing. Has put all facts succinctly.
Vivek Srivastava

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Very moving

Very moving true account of a holocaust survivor experience has a child and as a great spiritual leader of Israel

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Great stories of a great man

Survived Buchenwald concentration camp as child. Went from illiterate camp survivor to Ashkenazi Chief Rabbi of Israel. His history and his life meeting are poignant to profound. I enjoyed the narraration but most importantly the contents.

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Aptly named title

Out of the Depths is the translation of a remarkable biography originally written in Hebrew . Rabbi Israel Meir Lau served as chief rabbi of Israel for 10 years He was a mere child when his family was destroyed by the Nazis and together with his older brother he was imprisoned in the infamous Nazi concentration and labor camp of Buchenwald.

He was a model rabbi , a scholar, and a compassionate pastoral counselor. This autobiographical account of his survival thanks to the dedication of his older brother and several others is chilling and inspiring . Following his liberation he was reunited with others in the nascent country of Israel and together with others he has witnessed and partaken in the physical and spiritual rebuilding of the nation.

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Moving and inspiring again on my second listen

Moving and inspiring again on my second listen - Rabbi Lau brings to life an example of being a light onto the nations!!!

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